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Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome (MALS)
Digestive Health | Last Active: 6 hours ago | Replies (1229)Comment receiving replies
Hi Shawnee
Welcome to Mayo. From my research the procedure your Dr recommended has worked for many in the past. Is the doctor doing the surgery a vascular surgeon? May I ask if you have got to the stage of not eating yet. If you are lucky and they caught the compression early having the surgery may be beneficial. I feel the longer the condition goes un-diagnosed the worse the symptoms get. in many of the posts you will find they can not eat as the pain gets worse leading to them losing weight rapidly. I have my surgery consultation in 2 weeks, here are the questions I will be asking that may be relevant for you too:
1) What part of the celiac trunk has been compressed?
2) What is the mean systolic velocity of the celiac artery?
3) Have you as a surgeon dealt with celiac compression before.
4) If so what is your success rate? (how many patients are pain free?)
5) Will it be necessary to have an angioplasty or stent in the artery?
I am hoping your compression is minor and you don't need the angioplasty or stenting. If the answers to the questions are satisfactory then I wouldn't leave it too long to make your decision. The longer you leave it the worse you will get. I wish you all the best, please keep us informed.
Mark
Replies to "Hi Shawnee Welcome to Mayo. From my research the procedure your Dr recommended has worked for..."
Hi Mark. May I add an important question to your list for the surgeon? Ask how the surgeon addresses the celiac nerve ganglia. If the surgeon does not remove it, or partially remove it, be very very careful. You can’t image how much worse things got for many who had MALs ligament release without addressing the celiac nerve ganglia/plexus. Many good resources to read and stories to hear on Facebook MALs Awareness group. Good luck to you!
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Thank you so much! I’m able to eat but my symptoms are definitely getting worse. I’m in pain and nauseous daily (sometimes one or the other or both). I’m going to get a second opinion from a Vascular Surgeon who specializes in MALS named Dr. West, in Fort Worth, TX. The surgeon I’ve seen is a general surgeon who specializes in bariatric surgery.